Mail-delivery apparatus.



H. 0. WILSON.

MAIL DELIVERY APPARATUS.

' APPLICATION FILED DEC. 1, 1911.

Patented Apr 9, 1912.

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H. 0. WILSON.

MAIL DELIVERY APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.1, 1911.

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HOWARD' O. WILSON, OF AINSWORTH, NEBRASKA.

MAIL-DELIVERY APPARATUS.

Application led December 1, 1911.

Specification of Letters Patent.

My invention relates to mail delivery apparatus.

The present invention has for its object the provision, first, of a mailbag crane or holder adapted to be carried by the car which has novelmeans for retaining the mail bag, and is constructed and mounted as wellas adapted to the car in a new manner. A further object of the inventionis the provision of a novel catcher adapted to receive the mail bag fromthe crane, which is arranged so that it will whirl when the mail bag isreceived and compensate for the velocity of the mail bag deliveredthereto and also compensate for the shock of the impact.

The invention embodies novel features and combinations of parts,examples of which are set forth hereinafter and shown in theaccompanying drawings, in which'- Figure 1 is a perspective view showingthe mail bag ready to be caught; Fig. 2, a side elevation of thecatcher; Fig. 3, a plan view thereof; Fig. 4, a detail vview of a catchfor the stem of the mail bag holder; Fig. 5, a view in elevation,looking from the inside of the mail car of the delivery apparatus whenin lowered position; and Fig. 6, a perspective of the crane and thedevices for holding the mail bag thereon.

The catcher has a tubular post 1 adapted to be stationarily securedalongside of a track and in this post there telescopes a stem 2 whoseupper end is made flat at 3 and projects through the head 4 of the bagreceiver which is hinged thereto at 5. The pin 6 holds the bag receiverin horizontal position as also does a catch 7 carried by the bagreceiver and engaging a notch in an arcshaped guide 8 which is securedto the stem 2 and passes through an opening in the bag receiver. Thecatch 7 enables the bag receiver to be securely locked in horizontalposition, as shown in Fig. 2, but when the catch is released and the pin6 removed, the bag receiver can be swung into a vertical position. Thebag receiver has a semicircular arm 9 arranged somewhat concentric tothe circular head 10, the space 11 between these parts serving as achannel or mouth to receive the intermediate part of the bag. A stoutleaf spring 12 secured to the part 10 serves to release the bag from itscrane and as a guard for the mouth of the channel 11 so that once thebag passes thereinto, it cannot accidentally be thrown out of saidchannel. To enable the arm 9 to be reversed to the position shown indotted lines in Fig. 3 so that it may catch mail coming in eitherdirection, it is provided with a shoulder 13, and there are thumb screws14 which secure it to the head of the catcher. The object of the catcherbeing fto rapidly rotate in the tubular post or standard 1 and thusabsorb the shock of reception of the mail bag, I provide a bracket 15 onthe side of the post 1 through which is threaded thumb screw 16 carryinga friction shoe 17 which is received in an opening in the side of thestandard 1 and bears against the stem 2. The tension of the shoe 17 onstem 2 may be regulated as found desirable so that the rotation of thecatcher will be checked more or less rapidly as may be found desirablein practice.

Extending crosswise of the door-frame 20 of the car is a rod 21 (Fig. 5)which has an aperture 22. The rod also is provided with pinholes 24a,24". Encircling the rod 21 is a tube 25 which has the slots 26 receivingthe pin 24 according as it is inserted in hole 242L or 241. The sleeve25 has a slot 25EL adapted to receive the pin 22. A plug 27 is connectedto rod 21 by any suitable flexible connection, being adapted forreception in the aperture 22. Disposed crosswise of the tube or sleeve25 is another tube or sleeve 30, the arrangement being clear fromFig. 1. This tube or sleeve has converging slots 31 and 32 whose endsterminate substantially at a distance of'substantially 90 apart. Pivotedto the tube 30 are the catches 33 and 34 (Fig. 4), and there is pivotedto said tube a retaining catch 35 which is held in a positionintermediate of the catches 33 and 34 and in line with the longitudinalaxis of tube 30 by a leaf spring 36. The catch 35 has points which areadapted to be received in notches in the catches 33 and 34, whereby thecatch 35 may be retained in one position or the other, as shown in Fig.4.

Slidable longitudinally within and also adapted to rotate within thesleeve or tube 30 is the stem 40 of a crane 41, the stembeing providedwith a pin 42 which is adapted to travel in either of the slots 31 lor32, or to be retained by the catch 35, as

shown in Fig. 4. The stem 40 is provided with a suitable jointed handle43 by which it may beslid lengthwise in tube 30 or rotated therein, andit also has openings 44,

diametrically disposed, respectively, adapt! `coperate with the fingers46 to hold the rings of the mail bag thereon. The catches 48 areprovided with extensions 50 which overlap at 51 so that the operator canpress upon both of them simultaneously to throw the legs 49 of thecatches back. Vhen the extensions 50, 51 strike the leaf spring 12, thelegs 49 of the catches are pressed back by the spring 12 and the members9 and 10 snatch the mail bag from the fingers 46, the bag being thensupported by the parts 9 and 10. To enable the crane to be held insuitable position for attachment of the mail bag thereto when in thedepending position shown in Fig. 5, I provide a swinging arm 52 carriedby the frame 20.

"When the train is moving in the direction indicated by the arrow B,Fig. 5, pin 24 is placed in pinhole 24b and catch 35 is pushed to theleft and held in position by catch 33, thereby clearing slot 32; plug 27is pulled from hole 22 allowing the fork 41 to be swung into the car farenough to permit the application thereto of the mail bag or bags, thefork being held in this position by the catch 52, as shown by dottedlines in Fig. 5. Fingers 46 point toward inside of car in Fig. 5. Therings of one or more mail sacks are placed over fingers 46 where theyare held in position by the legs 49 engaging with the fingers 46. Thecatch 52 is now pushed aside to the full line position shown in Fig. 5and the sleeve 25 is slid on the bar 21 so that the pin 24 slides thefull length of'the lower horizontal portion of slot 26. On grasping thehandle 43, the fork 41 carrying the mail bags may be swung outwardly andupwardly, the pin 24 following the full length of the vertical portionof slot 26. From this position the air pressure due to the motion of thetrain and which strikes the mail bags, will slide the sleeve 25 on therod 21 until pin 24 has traveled the full length of the upper horizontalportion of the slot 26, whereupon the motion of the train holds theparts in this ufingers 46 pointing backwardly.

position. When the parts are in this position, the sacks and the fork 41are horizontal with the fingers 46 pointing downwardly. Catch 45 is nowreleased and stem 40 is shoved outward through tube 30; the pin 42 byfollowing slot 32 turning the fork 41 until, when fully extended, catch45 engages notch 44, the sacks and fork 41 being then in a perpendicularposition with the In this position the crane is ready to deliver thesacks to the catcher shown at the left of Fig. 1.

llhen the train is running in the direction of the arrow A, Fig. 5, plug24 is placed in pinhole 24a and catch 35 is pushed to the right where itis held by catch 34, thus clearing slot 31. Plug 27 is pulled out ofhole 22, and the fork swung into the car and the mail sacks suppliedthereto, as previously described. Thereupon sleeve 25 is slid to theright the full length of the lower horizontal portion of slot 26,thereby reversing the position of fork 41 from that previously describedand adapting the device to the delivery of the sack o-r sacks heldthereby.

The catcher and crane are relatively so positioned that the mail bagfirst strikes the spring 12 and passes into the channel 11 and issnatched from the crane, the releasing of -the catches allowing therings of the bag to slip off of the fingers 46. rIhe bag being receivedin the channel 11, the catcher whirls around and finally comes to rest,thus absorbing the velocity of the mail sack and the shock of itsdelivery. After delivering` the bag, the catch 45 is released, thehandle 43 pulled inwardly, and a reversal of the operations heretoforedescribed'having occurred, the crane is brought to the vertical positionshown in Fig. 5.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a mail delivery apparatus, the combination with a rotary circularhead, of an arc-shaped arm separated from said head by a space adaptedto receive the mail bag` and adaptable to be positioned on either sideof said head.

2. In a mail delivery apparatus, a catcher having a rotary stem, a headhinged thereto crane may be disposed vertically or horizontally andturned to different positions.

4. In a mail delivery apparatus, a crane having a stem mounted to swingoutwardly from the car and also mounted for rotation on its ownlongitudinal axis, whereby the crane may be disposed vertically orhorizontally and turned to different positions, and means for lockingthe crane in either horizontal or vertical position.

5. In a mail delivery apparatus, a crane having a stem mounted to swingoutwardly from the car and also mounted for rotation on its ownlongitudinal axis, whereby the crane may be disposed vertically orhorizontally and turned to diiferent positions, said stem also beingslidable in the direction of its length.

6. In a mail delivery apparatus, a crane having a stem mounted to swingoutwardly from the car and also mounted for rotation on its ownlongitudinal axis, whereby the crane may be disposed vertically orhorizontally and turned to dilferent positions, means for locking thestem in horizontal position, and means for locking said crane invertical position when disposed horizontally.

7. In a mail delivery apparatus, a crane having a stem mounted to swingoutwardly from the car and also mounted for rot-ation on its ownlongitudinal axis, whereby the crane may be disposed vertically orhorizontally and turned. to different positions, means for locking thestem in horizontal position, and means for locking said crane invertical position when disposed horizontally and for locking the stemand crane in vertical position when not in use.

8. In a mail delivery apparatus, a crane having a stein, a hinged tubeor sleeve in which said stem is longitudinally slidable, said tube orsleeve having an oblique slot, and a pin carried by the stem which isadapted to travel in the slot, whereby the crane may be swung from avertical to a horizontal position and vice versa and the stem turned tobring the crane into vertical position when the stem is disposedhorizontally.

9. In a mail delivery apparatus, the combination with a hinged tube orsleeve having oblique converging slots, of a stem rotatable and slidablein said sleeve, a crane carried by said stem, a pin carried by the stemand adapted to slide in either of the slots aforesaid, and catchmechanism for locking or releasing said pin when at the junction of saidslots, whereby the crane can be swung horizontally and turned tovertical position or vice versa.

10. In a mail delivery apparatus, the combination with a crane havingupper and lower arms adapted to engage the respective ends of a mailbag, of spring closed hinged locking or retaining catches adapted tohold the mail bag on the arms, and provided with means positioned sothat they will be struck by the mail bag catching apparatus whereby theyare automatically disengaged to release the bag from the crane.

11. In a mail delivery apparatus, the combination with a crane havingupper and lower arms adapted to engage the respective ends of a mailbag, of spring closed hinged locking or retaining catches adapted tohold the mail bag on the arms, said catches having upright arms disposedin advance of the mail bag and adapted to be struck by the mail bagdevices in advance of its catching the bag to thereby iirst release thebag.

12. In a mail delivery apparatus, a horizontally rotatable catcherhaving horizontally disposed separated arms adapted for the reception ofthe bag therebetween and to whirl as the bag is received from the craneon the car to thereby compensate for the velocity of the mail bag andabsorb the shock of the delivery thereof.

In testimony whereof, I hereunto aflix my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

' HOWARD O. WILSON.

Witnesses:

FRANK S. ToLIvER, JOHN B. S'roLL.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

